Damian looks equally doubtful. "I can whip up some arrows from these planks, but a bridge... eh."
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As Damian and Isabet converse, a massive ripple disturbs the black, fetid water.
Then another.
And then the surface EXPLODES upward.
A towering, ridged back breaches the water like a ship’s hull rising from the deep. Sludge and gore cascade off thick, moss-slathered scales as Old Leatherback erupts from the cistern’s heart. He is enormous, easily the length of a wagon train and twice as heavy. His crocodilian form grotesquely overgrown, with barnacle-like lumps trailing his tail and algae clinging to the folds around his gnarled limbs.
With a grinding, thunderous ROAR, the beast throws open his jaws, wide enough to snap multiple grown men in half, thrashes toward the walkway. The old creature blinks once, slowly, one milky yellow eye rising above the waters surface and fixing on you.
He’s not hunting.
He’s waiting.
He’s hungry and he doesn't appear to have a lot of patience.
Lola’s bone mask emanates the calming effect of the psychopomps and begins to sing a quiet song, please feed el cocodrillo as sooon as poooosssible. It is a soothing melody, but it’s not clear how successful the endeavor will end up being.
Coral uses Total Defense while waiting to see if Lola is successful in Fascinating the crocodile.
"well, I wish I had thought to bring a steak..." the sister looks at the massive teeth "Lots of steak" she reaches out to touch her companions (Damian, Lola, and Kendren) then in a wink of a tavern maid's eyes whisks them to the other side of the cistern.
Once he regains his footing after being whisked across the now-turbulent waters, Damian backs into the tunnel, eyeing the humongous crocodile warily. He didn't want to particularly confront the creature, but if it menaced any of his companions he would of course intervene.
Kendren hefted his shield as the crocodile rose out of the sewer water. It was massive - far too big to fight with his sword. He was sure it could swallow him whole. Still, he adopted a defensive position with Coral, shield raised, ready to defend himself, until he was suddenly on the other side of the sewer in a burst of teleportation magic. Turning, he once again adopted his position guarding the others. ”Feena, can you also teleport yourself and Coral across, or fly above its reach?”
Feena gave a scream of surprise when Old Leatherback appeared roaring from the water. He looked hungry, really hungry, and she did not want to be his next meal. She reached out to touch Coral and nodded her head as she said a few words and with a pop, they were on the other side of the place, safe and sound.
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With a flash of teleportation magic and a few tense heartbeats, the entire party avoids the hungry maw of Old Leatherback. The dire crocodile bellows in frustration as it thrashes in the cistern’s center, sending foul water sloshing up the stone walls, but the ancient beast does not pursue. It settles slowly back beneath the muck with a sullen hiss.
The air remains thick with the reek of sewage and mildew as you push forward. Following the route mapped by Grimetongue, you navigate a winding corridor of grime covered brick until it opens onto a narrow landing before a massive iron door.
Set into the sewer wall like a forgotten wound in stone, the black iron portal stands nearly ten feet tall and seems untouched by rust, its edges reinforced with thick rivets. Above it, lit faintly by spelllight and dancing reflections from the waters behind, looms a carved bust-Arazni, in her days as Aroden’s herald. The likeness is idealized and strange: proud, radiant, but twisted subtly out of proportion, her mouth stretched too wide, like a frozen scream or a terrible warning.
Kendren studied the stonework holding the door before them, as well as the bust of Arazni, observing the workmanship and seeing how recent it was. Once that was finished, he turned his attention to the door, evaluating the structure of it.
Lola raises an eyebrow and bows to the statue in a joking way, but does not say anything, mindful of the need for something close to stealth.
She will take a moment to look at the statue, thinking the open mouth might be some sort of gas trap.
Coral lowers her eyes and says a silent prayer to Iomedae, that Her former patron Arazni may find peace in some form.
She sees Lola looking around, and does the same.
The sister bumps the arm of the winged sorcerous, shoulder to shoulder and mouths 'Good Job' giving a warm smile with it. Then as the others inspect she moves forward. Using hand gestures of fingers from eyes to door, pressing a palm, and then touching her holy symbol, she asks if it is safe to touch it so she can see beyond it.
Kendren studies the worn stonework and the grim bust of Arazni above the doorway, but whatever secrets its sculptor may have etched into the details are lost on him. The work is ancient, yes, but the scale is too distorted, the face too exaggerated to give him clarity. The door itself proves more fruitful. A heavy slab of iron, reinforced at the edges and tightly fitted into the frame. It’s well-maintained, someone down here cares enough to keep it sealed. He notes something else too: a narrow, handsized gap between door and frame, just enough space that a tool or hand might be worked inside to the other side.
Lola peers at the ominous bust as her mask-covered face tilts with thoughtful suspicion. A faint scent of old rust and worse things clings to the mouth of the statue, and the groove worn into the stone beneath it only adds to her unease. Her instincts prove valid, but it's Coral who picks up on the true danger.
The halfling’s eyes sweep the floor as she finishes her prayer to Iomedae. Her gaze lingers just a second longer where others might not have looked, and then she spots it. A pressure plate, cleverly disguised in the slime-slicked floor just ahead of the door. The craftsmanship is subtle, but unmistakable to a trained eye. The plate is no doubt the trigger for a trap of some kind.
Meanwhile, Isabet presses her hand to the cold metal, muttering a prayer under her breath. After a minute, her vision slips through the iron barrier to the other side of the door where she sees a flicker of flame-two torches casting light on stone walls. A heavy iron bar rests across the inner side of the door, confirming it would not open from their side. Standing in the chamber beyond are three Seal-Breaker knights in their full blackened armor, milling near the top of a stairwell that descends deeper into the undercity. They appear to be unaware the party right now.
The sister frowns, then moves to her companions, whispering in their ears, one at a time "three knights in dark armor protecting a stairwell to the undercity, they have not heard us. Heavy iron bar baring the door from their side."
Coral gets out her tools to begin disabling the trap.
"May I have some assistance?"
The sister touches Coral's shoulder and prays filling her with an eager desire to succeed flamboyantly. The Cayden way.
Kendren patiently waits for Coral to disarm the trap. Once she is finished, he cautiously steps to the hand-sized hole between door and frame and peeks inside.
Coral will Take 10 for a 31 if allowed (33 if the Any-Tool counts as MW Thieves' Tools).
Feena was pleased they made it safely across and denied the big lizard a meal and later smiled in surprise at Isabet's shoulder bump the whole thin a surprise, but a pleasant one. When the hidden doorway was discovered and the trap being disarmed Feena stayed back to let the others work while she was ready to blast any attackers that might come out at them.
Judging by the others' movements and reactions, something or someone was on the other side of the imposing door, so Damian gets ready as well. He will need a new bow string once they were done here, the humidity and... other environmental hazards were really starting to ruin his weapon.
It's clear whatever pressurized liquid that was going to come out of the statues mouth was going to be quite unpleasant, whatever it was. Once she sets to it, Coral easily deactivates the pressure plate linking to the carving of Arazni. Once it's safe, Kendren moves up to peek to the other side.
On the other side at the end of the corridor, he spots the same group of Knights that Isabet saw. He can see a heavy iron bar blocking the gate from opening. While he can't get an easy angle on the bar, it's possibble someone could rig up a way to remove the bar.
Quietly, Kendren stepped back from the hole and whispered, "I think using this hole we could lift the bar that blocks the doors, then throw them open and hit the dark Knights hard. Coral, can you rig something up that would allow us to push it off? Once you do, I'll throw open the doors. If the rest of you can hit the Knights with a barrage of magic, we might be able to finish them off quickly, without them getting away to alert the rest of the cultists."
Coral works to rig up a way to remove the bar. She folds the Any-Tool into a hook, snakes it through the gap, and tries to lift the bar quietly.
The sister takes out her flask, dabbing each of her companions with some of her holy brew, then waits until Kendren's boot is about to slam open the door and says "May Cayden give you the boost you need to kick their-" the crash drowns out the last word but everyone knows where it was going.